Thanks to the Proton compatibility layer, gaming on Linux went from an extremely laughable term to reality in just a few years. ProtonDB stats suggest that more than 50% of the top AAA games on Steam are now playable on Linux. Therefore, if you’re looking for games to play on your new Linux installation or recently discovered Linux gaming, here are the best Linux games in 2025.
From popular games like Cyberpunk 2077 and Elden Ring to Stardew Valley, and the Spider-Man series, all of them are available on Linux either natively or through Proton. You don’t need a specific Linux distro to play these games as they can run on almost any distro out there, as long as you have the suitable drivers installed.
1. Grand Theft Auto V
GTA V is one of the most renowned games in the world and with GTA VI set to launch later this year, it will still be relevant for a while. There are lots of reasons to play GTA V and one of them is how well the game has aged for something that was developed in the year 2013. Over the years, it has received tons of quality updates and content that keeps people circling back to the game.
The objectives of the game are the same as any Grand Theft Auto game: Completing the missions and progressing through the story while traversing the vast open world. Overall, story-wise and graphics-wise, it is one of the best games you can play on Linux. Although, it’s worth noting that Rockstar recently shut down GTA Online on Linux due to the addition of BattlEye anti-cheat. Linux technically supports BattlEye but Rockstar hasn’t enabled it.
2. Forza Horizon 5
Not everyone’s a fan of open-world and action games. Some like the racing action and the endless adrenaline flow, and that’s why we have Forza Horizon 5. Made by Playground Games and published by Xbox game studios, Forza is one of the most successful racing game franchises. Players get access to a huge open world with different terrains and hundreds of different cars to choose from.
The game also has a multiplayer mode where you can race with your friends or explore the open world to witness the beautiful scenery together. You can also race online with other players and the graphics, physics, and gameplay are all top-tier. Although Forza Horizon 5 has been superseded by Forza Motorsport, it’s undoubtedly still one of the best racing games you can play on Linux.
3. Marvel’s Spider-Man Series
The Insomniac-developed Marvel’s Spider-Man series is one of the best Spider-Man series ever made. Although the games were initially only PlayStation-exclusive, they eventually made it to the PC starting with Spider-Man Remastered, Spider-Man: Miles Morales, and the latest on the list, Spider-Man 2 (review). The latter won the Action Game of the Year 2024 award at DICE Awards which speaks for itself.
The games run great on Linux with capable hardware with excellent ratings on ProtonDB. They’re all available on Steam and are just as easy to start playing compared to Windows. That said, overall if you love Spider-Man, these are the games to get started with your gaming journey on Linux.
4. Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
Yet another Marvel franchise that’s worth your attention. Guardians of the Galaxy was developed by Square Enix back in 2021. Yes, it’s old but I feel it’s one of the most underrated games you can play. And it’s pretty inexpensive now. At first, everyone had their reservations after the poor reviews on the Avengers game but GOTG turned out to be a great game and won The Game Award for Best Narrative.
Now, a few reports suggest there are a few bugs when playing on Linux but they aren’t game-breaking and significant. You should have a great experience with the latest Proton version. Overall, it’s easily one of the best games you can play on Linux.
5. Five Nights at Freddy’s Series
The Five Nights at Freddy’s franchise has received much love in the past decade with some of the best suspenseful horror-thriller games in its portfolio. For those unaware, the gameplay of most FNAF games revolves around managing limited resources and surviving attacks. You get doses of jump scares with each getting scarier as you progress through the game.
All FNAF games work extremely well on Linux, including the latest FNAF: Into the Pit. Most players reported a seamless experience with minimal issues and a great overall experience. In fact, I had the pleasure of playing FNAF Security Breach on a fellow Linux nerd’s PC and it ran brilliantly well. Overall, if you’re into horror and suspense games, it’s the one franchise that you cannot and shouldn’t miss.
6. Genshin Impact
A game that you least expected and I least expected would ever work on Linux, now runs flawlessly on Linux. For all the Gacha and anime heads out there, Genshin Impact could be an extremely fun game thanks to its excellent storyline, characters, game design, and it’s incredibly well-balanced free-to-play nature. While HoYoverse doesn’t claim Genshin Impact is officially supported, it does run very well on Linux.
As a Genshin aficionado, I’ve been following Genshin Impact on Linux closely for almost two years now. While it didn’t initially work, the game started working flawlessly post version 3.4 without requiring any third-party launcher. Therefore, you can rest assured that you aren’t violating Genshin’s Terms of Service and your account won’t be banned. The game works phenomenally well on Linux when installed via Heroic Games launcher or the official launcher.
7. Baldur’s Gate 3
If you love RPGs and Dungeons and Dragons, you’ll love Baldur’s Gate. People rave about its storyline in the reviews, claiming it’s one of the best role-playing, adventure, and strategy video games ever made. The game looks truly breathtaking With its branching narratives, different choices and outcomes, and a rich detailed world.
The game runs extremely well on Linux and Steam Deck, and Steam Deck has also been verified. While players did sometimes report sound bugs, we suggest using the latest version of Proton to steer clear of the potential challenges you may face with the old version. That said, overall, Baldur’s Gate 3 is an excellent RPG game you shouldn’t miss on Linux.
8. No Man’s Sky
If you love Space Exploration and Adventure-type games, you’ll love No Man’s Sky. It came out in 2016 and while it did have a rocky start, frequent updates to the game have completely transformed the experience. You can visit alien planets, build bases, and also play multiplayer, which is easily one of the most fun parts of the game. The Worlds Part II update of the game overhauls the lighting system which makes the game look on par with an extremely recent AAA title.
No Man’s Sky runs well on Linux and you can download it via Steam. While there may still be some issues pertaining to graphics at times, the game should run smoothly depending on your rig. It does have a few bugs that eventually seem to get in the way but, the way Hello Games handled the game since its release to now and we’ve seen them quietly release patches to fix bugs on Linux, which is commendable for such a small team of developers. Overall, No Man’s Sky is easily one of the best games you can play on Linux.
9. Persona 5 Royal
Persona 5 Royal is an extremely fun JRPG where you play as a student who explores the Metaverse where you set fire to the desires of characters. The game is turn-based, has life simulation mechanics, and the overall artwork and narration are extremely good. The soundtrack is great and the story is excellent which makes it stand out from other RPG genres.
Persona 5 Royal runs wonderfully on Linux via Proton and Steam and players barely reported any issues when playing. It’s a modern classic and the improvements from Persona 5 are pretty great. It’s not the only Persona title that runs great on Linux, though. Persona 4, 3 too are rated well on Steam and Linux.
10. Assassin’s Creed Series
The Assassin’s Creed Series is loved by games around the world, and you’d be happy to know that almost all games run on Linux with little to no issues. From Assassin’s Creed Odyssey to Assassin’s Creed 2, Black Flag, Brotherhood, Origins, Mirage (review), Syndicate, and Unity, they’re all rated Gold and playable by Steam.
I recently played Assassin’s Creed Mirage on my Steam Deck and Fedora installation as it went on sale and hardly noticed any issues with the latest NVIDIA driver. The gameplay was smooth with a few glitches here and there but nothing game-breaking. Overall, if you’re an AC fan, the old games are definitely worth revisiting. The new games, while not as good, are still worth trying if you love the series.
11. Metro Exodus
Metro Exodus is based on a post-nuclear war setting where the remnants of humanity are struggling to survive in the Metros of Moscow. Having battled the toxic wastelands, horrifying mutated creatures, and civil war, they now, wish to rise above this darkness onto the surface.
Here, you play as Artyom leading a group of Spartan soldiers seeking a new beginning to the East of Russia. Metro Exodus is an excellent first-person-based shooter game, with intense combat, survival, and horror elements as well. The narrative of this game, as you explore the landscapes through a full seasonal cycle will surely move you.
12. Control
Control is yet another amazing action-adventure game on Linux. The game was released in 2019 and is available on multiple platforms. The objective of the game is pretty simple. You play as Jesse Faden and your task is to explore the FCB’s headquarters which is now a center for paranormal activities. Your task is to defeat the enemy causing the problem called the Hiss.
Throughout the game, you’re required to collect stuff, defeat enemies with your abilities, and do tasks to progress through the story. The gameplay is fantastic, and the graphics are smooth and insanely good. The game is available on Steam and Epic for Windows and Linux.
13. Stray
Stray is an award-winning adventure game where you play as a Stray cat that falls into a city of robots living inside walls. The objective is to return back to where you came from with the help of your robot companion.
You progress through the story by climbing obstacles in the third person, interacting with the map to open new pathways, and solving puzzles. Overall, it is one of the best casual adventure games that you can play on Linux.
14. Dying Light Series
The Dying Light series is one of the most popular post-apocalyptic game series and is revered across the gaming community for its story, design, and overall gameplay. There are two installments in the series — the original Dying Light and Dying Light 2.
You play as an undercover agent with the mission to infiltrate the quarantine zone called Harran which is a Middle Eastern city. The gameplay features parkour and a city with a day and night mechanism. Zombies are more active at night but slow during the daytime. There’s also a multiplayer mode where you can invite three more players to progress through the game. Overall, it’s hands down, one of the best zombie games that you can play on Linux.
15. Elden Ring
And how can we forget 2022’s massive game and the game of the year award winner Elden Ring? Fortunately, Elden Ring works flawlessly and has been since it was released. The game was Steam Deck compatible on launch, which is a testament to how good of a job Valve has been doing for Linux and Steam Deck.
One of the reasons why Elden Ring was successful was due to its resemblance to Dark Souls. The game was very well received and is known for its striking combat, high-quality open world, and stealth mechanics. The game sold over 20 million copies in six months, making it one of the most successful games.
16. Tomb Raider Series
Tomb Raider is another adventure game that is fully compatible with Steam on Linux. It runs on almost all of the Linux distros. The game revolves around a female warrior who forges herself to become the Tomb Raider. It takes you through the unforgiving jungle where you have to face the deadliest animals and find a way to survive. Along the way, you will learn many skills, and garner weapons, and outfits that will eventually lead you to the defining moment.
There are three main recent Tomb Raider games — Tomb Raider, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, all of them work on Linux. The best part is that you don’t need to buy each of these games separately, rather, get the Tomb Raider: Definitely Survivor Trilogy, which includes all games.
17. What Remains of Edith Finch
What Remains of Edith Finch is a dated game and while it’s not a AAA game, it has top-tier storytelling. The game involves Finch, a 17-year-old girl coming back to her ancestral home for the first time only to discover the secrets that everyone’s been hiding, a series of events, and deaths that led to the collapse of her family’s structure.
The game won multiple awards, including the Best Narrative category in the Game Awards 2017 and the Best Game award in the British Academy Games Awards. It runs like a dream on Linux and is a must-play game for those who appreciate good storytelling with eerie twists in it.
18. Counter-Strike 2
Counter-Strike 2 is the next installation in the CS franchise. Its predecessor, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is one of the best FPS games on Linux, and CS 2 will be no different. The multiplayer shooter game should run perfectly fine with all the controls and top-notch, new, and improved graphics quality.
For those unaware, Counter-Strike 2 is an objective-based multiplayer shooter featuring two opposing teams, the Terrorists and the Counter-Terrorists. Depending on the game mode, the teams must fulfill various goals – for example, in the Classic mode, it’s either defusing a bomb or saving hostages. There are other mods such as Arms Race or Demolition and you can also play against AI-controlled opponents. CS: GO was free to play on Steam, but Counter-Strike 2 will probably not be free.
19. Unravel
If you like puzzle-based, relaxing games that you can play on the couch, Unravel is for you. You play as Yarny, a character made out of yarn, and discover the bittersweet memories of an old lady who goes through brief moments of happiness and later extremely sad events throughout the levels.
The stars of the show are the levels and the music. They’re fun yet challenging, brisk yet time-consuming. The music is composed by Frida Johansson and Henrik Oja and it brings a sense of calm and coziness to the mix. Unravel is a game that I’d play during the rain. Overall, it is one of the finest comfort games ever made. It’s a game that you’d play on a couch laid down, cry a bit, and go on reminiscing about what life has to offer and why it’s important to cherish the people around you.
20. The Last of Us Part I
The Last of Us Part I is one of the best PS5 exclusives and is the remake of the original Last of Us released in 2013. The game is set in a post-apocalyptic world where players have to go through different areas and use weapons to defeat the infected, cannibalistic people.
The new Last of Us has improved graphics and a listen mode that allows you to detect enemies through high-sensing spatial awareness. While the description so far might sound like we’re describing The Walking Dead, the story’s pretty different and interesting. Last of Us Part II remastered isn’t here as of writing this.
21. The Witcher 3
Currently, Witcher 3 is one of the most popular desktop games which is available on Windows and Google Stadia. But what if I tell you that you can play Witcher 3 on Linux too? Well, with Proton support on Steam, you can play Witcher 3 on Linux without much friction. ProtonDB, a user-driven database that tracks the status of Windows game compatibility on Linux, has awarded Platinum status to Witcher 3.
It essentially means that you can play this game without much issue if you have a decently powerful machine. However, you may have to update your graphics driver manually. As for the game, it’s about a fantasy world where you are tasked to find a child of prophecy who can save the world.
22. Superliminal
Love mind-bending games, Superliminal is for you. It’s a puzzle game that really gets into your mind by playing with perspectives. Released in 2020, sure it’s a bit old at this point, but given its out-of-the-box design and puzzles that will surely make your head scratch, it’s one of the best games you can play.
The premise of the game is that you’re stuck in this dream world where the rules of physics are directly related to how you see things. Like picking up a key and seeing it from different perspectives to make it fit into the door, and more. Superliminal runs great through Proton, so if you’re looking for a puzzle game to pass the time, it’s easily one of the best games you can play on Linux.
23. Stardew Valley
Stardew Valley is one of the top-ranking games on Steam and thankfully, it runs fine on Linux as well. If you don’t know, Stardew Valley is an RPG game that is also very much like Minecraft due to its open-ended world. Here, you need to apply your mind and create a strategy to survive the farm life.
The game has linear gameplay unlike other graphics-intensive games, but it takes simulation to a whole new level and expands on it. The game offers a fantasy world where you can grow crops, raise poultry, and perform many household duties. Simply put, Stardew Valley is ranked among the best simulation games and you should give it a try on your Linux machine. Besides, if you have a Chromebook with Steam support, it’s one of the best Chromebook games.
24. Cyberpunk 2077
Cyberpunk was one of the most anticipated games of all time until it came out and received a bad rating because it was rendered with bugs and glitches. The issues were because CD Projekt RED, the developers of the game, had to rush the release to adhere to the release schedule. Although most issues with the game have been fixed, the bad first impression hindered the rating.
Cyberpunk 2077 is a roleplaying game set in a vast open world where you play as V and hack your way through the story by acquiring weapons to progress through the story. Overall, it is one of the best games you can play on Linux using the Proton Compatibility Layer.
25. War Thunder
If you’re a fan of multiplayer games that incorporate teamwork and lots of explosions and destruction, War Thunder is the game for you. It’s a free-to-play, cross-platform military game published by Gaijin Distribution where you can control tanks to take on ground fights, go above the horizons, and indulge in air combat with military airplanes, or take on enemies at sea.
The overall combat is really fun and exciting to play alone and with friends. War Thunder doesn’t need lots of resources to run. All you need is 4GB RAM and a GTX 660 or Radeon 77XX and above graphics card. Overall, it’s one of the best free-to-play titles that you can download from Steam and play on Linux or Steam Deck.
Linux compatibility is largely thanks to the Proton compatibility layer, an open-source software that allows you to play games that are meant for Windows on Linux. It does so by translating Windows-understandable DirectX instructions to Vulkan-understandable instructions (Linux understands Vulkan instructions).
Proton is a modified version of Wine (Wine is not an emulator), as software that’s been used for a decade to install Windows apps on Linux. Thanks to the largely scalable nature of Proton, supported games run as if they’re running natively with absolutely no hiccups, or in some cases, with little to lots of tinkering. To enable Proton on Steam, go to Settings > Steam Play and enable all the toggles under the Steam Play menu.
These are some of the best AAA games you can play on the Linux platform. Now, there are plenty of other games that we couldn’t mention or this list would never end. Some of them are Black Myth: Wukong, the God of War series, Hogwarts Legacy, the Final Fantasy series, Ghost of Tsushima, and more which are all playable on Linux!
That said, it’s safe to say that the days of games not working on Linux are way past us. If there’s a major release, chances are that it will be supported on Linux and Steam Deck, so you don’t need to worry. Which is your favorite one? Let us know in the comments below!
There are tonnes of games on Linux, but if we had to pick a few Elden Ring, GTA V, and The Last of Us are all amazing games.
All games that don’t have Kernel-level anti-cheat or built-in anti-cheat can be played on Linux. Valve with Proton has also sorted BattlEye and Easy Anti-Cheat support, so don’t be surprised if you find supported games with those anti-cheats. You can visit the areweanticheatyet.com website to find all the supported and borked games that have anti-cheats built into them.
Yes, games run really well on Linux, and the Steam Deck is the best example of it. In fact, there have been instances where they tend to run better than on Windows. Proton is an exceptionally well-built layer and handles games well, so well that you won’t feel like you are “technically” emulating them on a Linux machine.
